Marine and his bomb-sniffing dog together again

LEDGEVIEW – When fighting overseas, many servicemen and women form a bond that can never be broken.

The same can be said for one Ledgeview Marine and a bomb-sniffing dog that kept him safe during his first tour of duty in Afghanistan.

The two recently reunited, and for Cpl. Jordan Serr, the black lab gave him memories he’ll never forget.

“They had a big truck that had a bunch of kennels on it and they just said go open one of the doors and pick out a dog so I opened up the door and that’s when I first saw Ccash,” Serr said.

It was love at first sight.

“We were attached to the hip from that point on,” Serr said.

After a few weeks of dog handler training, Serr and Ccash, pronounced Cash, headed to Afghanistan in 2010.

While on patrol, Serr says Ccash saved his life and his fellow Marines lives more than once.

“He found a booby trapped house,” Serr said.

But Ccash did more than just sniff for bombs.

“For the rest of the platoon, every time they’d go up to do watch he would slip into their sleeping bags because it was warm for him but he’d also be keeping it warm for them,” Serr said.

Serr finished his first tour in Afghanistan in 2011.

When he returned, he had to let Ccash go, never knowing if he’d see his four-legged friend again.

“That wasn’t the funnest moment,” Serr said.

Ccash had to go back to work and ended up with another Marine.

But the two wouldn’t be apart for long. Two years later while working on base in California, Serr met a dog trainer that was taking care of Ccash. Ccash had an injured paw and was recovering in a hotel room before his next tour of duty.

“I walked in and he kind of sniffed me on the leg and then he kind of jumped up how we used to do,” Serr said.

After a short visit, the two eventually said their goodbyes but Serr couldn’t stop thinking about Ccash.

So when the Marine learned he might be able to adopt his former comrade, he filed the paperwork.

Serr waited a year before finding out he and Ccash would finally be together again.

The lab’s been home for a week.

“It was good to know that he still remembered me,” Serr said.

The Marine and his dog share an unbreakable bond.

“Just some of the stuff we’ve been through together kind of bonds you better than best friends,” Serr said.